March 31 (Bloomberg) -- New Jersey has regained 123,200
jobs under Governor Chris Christie, about half of the number
lost in the recession that began in December 2007, according to
state Labor Department data.

The Garden State lost 3,700 jobs in February, after gaining
6,300 in the first month of the year. January’s job count was
revised from initial reports that indicated a drop of 3,900
positions. New Jersey’s unemployment rate remained at 7.1
percent in February, down from 8.8 percent a year earlier,
according to the data.

“The February count, especially in a sector like leisure
and hospitality, was probably held down by the big storm around
Valentine’s Day,” Charles Steindel, the state’s chief
economist, said March 27 in a statement. “The large and welcome
upward revision for January suggests that in these conditions,
the preliminary numbers may be less reliable than usual.”

Neighboring New York gained back all of the jobs it lost in
the slump by 2012. Its unemployment rate is 6.8 percent. The
national jobless level was 6.7 percent in February.

Christie, a 51-year-old Republican who won a second term in
November, has cut business taxes and awarded companies tax
incentives to create jobs. Democrats, who control the
legislature, have said he isn’t doing enough.